Imagine loading, hands free, between 150 to 400 trucks in a 24 hour period. That's what Hanson Permanente Cement in Cupertino, California achieved using three fully automated bulk cement truck loading systems. DCL's operator free system can load both semi-trucks and tandem trailers in less than 6 minutes from the start of truck entry until the truck exits the scale.

DCL - SmartLoader™ Automated Loading

Their fully automatic, unattended bulk loading stations use DCL's SmartLoader™ technology. Here is how it works.

The top of the truck is scanned when it enters the station.

When the open hatch is detected, a traffic light signals the driver to stop.

The vision system takes the final hatch coordinates and adjusts the loading spout positioner, centering the spout to the hatch.

The spout is lowered into the hatch once the scale has captured the vehicle tare weight.

When the filling cycle is complete, the spout raises.

The traffic signal and exit gate allow the driver to exit the station.

If similar truck trailers are used in the same loadout station, dual direction positioners can reduce costs.

Using a hands free, automatic loading system has a number of advantages;

Reduce Loading Time: No more moving trucks back and forth to line up with loading spouts. The system automatically locates the open hatch and adjusts the loading spout accordingly.

More Customer Friendly: Drivers enter the loadout area and are automatically loaded without assistance and without getting out of their trucks.

Two students, Tim and Kate, argue about the answer to a SAT exam question they had both encountered. They were trying to convince one another that THEY were right!

The question was: If you drive halfway to a town 60 miles away at a speed of 30mph, how fast would you need to drive the rest of the way to have an average speed of 60mph over the entire trip? Assume that any time lost for acceleration or deceleration is negligible.

You need to travel to the town directly (assume a straight line) from your half way position, and once there, you stop and turn off the engine.